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Wills and Harry wow Memphis wedding watchers

Arienne Thompson

Laura Fenton (right) and her mother Rochelle Fenton await the arrival of Prince William and Prince Harry at Guy Pelly's wedding on Saturday. Photo: Carlo Allegri

Memphis: The city famous for its King on Saturday night hosted a party fit for princes.

Memphis got a taste of Royal mania over the weekend, with Princes William and Harry in town for the wedding of close friend Guy Pelly and the Holiday Inn heiress Lizzy Wilson, a Memphis local.

There are, however, no reports as yet of newly single Harry finding his own Southern belle.

The wedding ceremony took place at the Memphis Hunt & Polo Club in east Memphis, not far from the private residence where Prince William and Prince Harry were staying for the weekend.

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Royal fan Danny Harp, 15, travelled from Nashville and staked out his spot outside the Hunt & Polo Club around noon, complete with Union Jack and a souvenir book from William's own wedding to Kate Middleton in 2011. "It's very exciting to see these people who are seas away normally this close to home," he explained.

Laura Fenton, 27, and her mother, Rochelle, 58, decided to re-purpose their Kentucky Derby hats as wedding attire and join the crowd, but this was not their first royal rodeo. "For William and Kate's wedding, we got up at 3am and had a party," recalled Laura. "We had fancy china and my mum printed off the royal schedule of events."

They weren't expecting to see much, said Laura: "Probably just the black SUVs and the motorcade, but that's closer than we would ever be to British royalty."

Tomeeka White, 40, admitted she'd been "kinda, sorta" stalking them during their time in Memphis, saying, "I want to see them - just a glimpse."

Excitement - and the sound of camera shutters - reached a fever pitch each time a big black SUV pulled up in front of the venue. But by the time the vintage car carrying the bride arrived, onlookers figured the princes had already slipped past them.

The wedding ceremony followed days of pre-nuptial celebrations, including a dinner on Thursday night for 175 guests at the city's most famous BBQ joint, Charlie Vergos' Rendezvous, and a private tour of Graceland, which the princes and a large group of wedding guests enjoyed on Friday.

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie were also in Memphis for the wedding. They spent Thursday night drinking on Beale Street with friends from the bride and groom's inner circle.